IB2020/9 Emergency Toll-Free Telephone Services Part 2: A Police Line in Papua New Guinea

This In Brief presents a case study of a toll-free police telephone service that has been established in Papua New Guinea (PNG). A companion piece (Part 1) outlined some of the key challenges encountered when setting up and operating such telephone services in challenging contexts.

PNG has a reputation for high rates of crime, especially in its urban centres. The public sector is under-resourced, with the size of and funding for the Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary not keeping abreast of the country’s rapid rise in population. Public surveys and research conducted over the years indicate widespread distrust of the police, their unreliable responses to reported crimes and low arrest rates. A public/private partnership led to the founding of a toll-free emergency police telephone line in PNG’s second largest urban centre, Lae.

Keywords: developing country, development context, emergency, mobile phones, mobile phone, mobile technology, Papua New Guinea, Pacific, Oceania, telephone.